Bohol local gov’t, DepEd held swim meet at viral Chocolate Hills resort

The cart before the horse, one of our editors called it – Captain’s Peak Resort, that is.

The whole world saw how an entire government went haywire over a small resort situated at the bottom of three Chocolate Hills in Carmen town, Bohol. Many concerned citizens have pointed out how the resort had “defaced” the hills as slides and cottages were built on the protected mound’s foot.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) shocked the public even more when it announced that the resort had operated for months without an environmental compliance certificate (ECC).

On July 1, 1997, then-president Fidel V. Ramos declared the Chocolate Hills Natural Monument a protected area, designating it a National Geological Monument and a Protected Landscape for its unique geological formations. (READ: What you need to know about Chocolate Hills)

Officials at both the municipal and provincial levels were the most shocked, however, when the DENR said that a temporary closure order (TCO) was issued way back in September 2023. They only learned about the order after DENR’s announcement on Wednesday, March 13.

Almost like a chorus to a long-running ballad, the officials said, “We didn’t know about it.”

While it may seem like they’re off the hook for being blindsided by the DENR, some locals and Captain’s Peak Resort administrator Julieta Sablas told Rappler that the provincial government still held a swimming competition between February 16 and 18 even though they led a probe on it as early as August 2023.

So what’s the truth? Did the provincial government just forget about the controversy or did it just give in and say “to heck with it” for the sports event?

The resort in question 

Let’s establish the basic facts. For one, the resort got a business permit in 2019. They didn’t have an ECC back then and at present…yet Sagbayan Mayor Restituto Suarez III still signed on the permit’s renewal.

The mayor’s executive secretary, Felito Pon, told Rappler that it happened because there was a “regular presumption” that the concerned government agencies had already reviewed all the attachments to the renewal.

This may explain the “cart without the horse” – a resort built without a completely valid permit that justifies its construction. But it won’t explain why the town’s mayor just assumed the necessary papers were okay without first checking if everything was in order. Never assume, is the rule, right?

Sablas told Rappler on Thursday, March 14, that they began development in 2019. 

After reports of the resort’s access road allegedly defaced two Chocolate hills and slides were built on the hills surfaced in August 2023, the province began its investigation into the resort.

Rappler visited the site in Sagbayan town and found an access road that seemingly cuts through the foot of two hills. At the resort’s swimming pool, there are two slides set up at least seven feet at the foot of another set of hills.

“I wrote a letter to the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO)…They provided us with the same story from (officials) of Sagbayan – that they have the title, the Protected Areas Management Board (PAMB) resolution and the approval of DENR,” Bohol Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado told Rappler on Friday, March 15.

The governor added that he instructed the committee on natural resources and environmental protection, led by Bohol Provincial Board Member Jamie Villamor, to investigate further.

Villamor told Rappler on Friday afternoon that they asked for findings from the investigation but never received any copy.

“After follow-ups through phone calls, the answers were consistent that (Captain’s Peak) was still in the process of complying, still revising, and we were just waiting until what happened in the viral video,” Villamor said.

The province knew

Metodio Maraguinot Jr., head of the provincial government’s education development center, revealed on Friday that the province became aware that the provincial swim meet was going to be held at the controversial resort through concerned parents in late 2023.

“The provincial meet that was done at Captain’s Peak was actually organized by the local division office, which is the division of Bohol Department of Education (DepEd). The only role that the provincial government extended is specifically for the assistance under the Special Education Fund,” Maraguinot said.

The sports event is one of the DepEd’s highlights leading up to the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) meet. 

Maraguinot clarified that the provincial government gave P2 million for the event but intended the fund to be used for the venue that was supposed to be in Carmen town. He added that the town government was the recipient of the P2 million.

But why did the venue change from Carmen town to Sagbayan town?

Lack of facilities

Rappler visited the office of Carmen Mayor Conchita “Che” Toribio Delos Reyes to ask why they moved the event that was supposed to be staged in the town to Sagbayan – around 17 kilometers away from each other. 

The mayor was not around but the municipal administrator, lawyer Eliezer Cagol Jr., told Rappler on Friday afternoon that they did not have any facilities for the swimming competition. 

The lawyer refused to give any further information, deferring to the mayor who will release a statement on the issue at a later date.

Pon told reporters on Thursday that the conveners of the provincial meet requested Sagbayan to allow them to move their venue to Captain’s Peak. 

“For humanitarian consideration, meron naman tayong ganyan so pinahintulutan natin ‘yon (we had something like that so we allowed it),” the Sagbayan mayor’s executive secretary said.

As of Thursday, the mayor’s face and the town’s seal could still be seen on the poster set up beside the resort’s pool.

In the end

Going back, DepEd still had the discretion to decide where the event would take place, but did it know about the controversy? Apparently.

Maraguinot told Rappler that the DepEd Bohol Division Office pushed through with the swimming competition at the viral resort despite efforts to relay the parents’ concerns and a proposal to hold the event instead at the Carlos P. Garcia Sports Complex in Tagbilaran City.

“In fairness to DepEd, they did have a consultation with us, we had a dialogue about it, but still their decision was to hold the swimming competition at the Captain’s Peak because apparently they have already planned, already organized, already made the necessary arrangements,” Maraguinot said.

Rappler reached out to DepEd Bohol Schools Division Superintendent Casiana Caberte for comment on the issue but we have yet to receive a reply.

With all the puzzle pieces in place, we now know that DepEd pushed through with the sports event at the controversial resort, with the cooperation of the local governments of Sagbayan and Carmen, despite the concerns raised by the province and parents.

In the end, the resort closed its doors on Thursday, not knowing when it would be able to operate again. At least 16 employees, mostly mothers supporting their children, lost their jobs overnight, and their families will have to live with that. A cart without a horse that has resulted in a painful crash.

As the Sagbayan mayor’s executive secretary put it, “Nangyari na kasi, hindi na natin mababago.” (It has already happened and we can’t change it.) – Rappler.com

ALSO ON RAPPLER

• How messy governance, paperwork allowed a resort in Chocolate Hills
• What you need to know about Chocolate Hills
• Bohol provincial gov’t looking into 2 other tourist attractions built on Chocolate Hills

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